DMIS is a command line based CMM programming language for use with a coordinate measurement machine (CMM) and associated computer hardware and software used to measure and analyze an object. U.S. Pat. No. 5,198,990 issued to Farzan et al. on Mar. 30, 1993 discloses coordinate measurement and inspection methods and apparatus including the DMIS syntax, and is herein incorporated by reference. FIG. 1 of the '990 patent incorporated herein as prior art FIG. 1 illustrates a coordinate measurement machine environment including a frame assembly 12 having a reference table 14, a robotics unit 16 and a machine control unit 18. The coordinate measurement machine is used to measure or inspect an object 20 via a sensor or probe 22 mounted to robotics unit 16 and controlled via machine control unit 18. Machine control unit 18 is a computer system comprising a central processing unit, a hard drive, floppy disk and CD-ROM drives, and random access memory, and any other devices commonly associated with a computer system. Machine control unit 18 is operatively connected to a variety of computer accessories including a keyboard 38 and pointing device such as a mouse, a monitor 40, and a printer 42.
The machine control unit 18 is programmed to calculate dimensions and points on the object from the output signals of the probe and output signals from associated linear encoders, using the DMIS syntax. Difficulty with the widely used DMIS syntax has always been the recognition of the different commands from looking at a blur of code. That is, users of DMIS have had to learn and live with difficult to read and hard to edit and debug Part Inspection Programs. Accordingly, there is a need to simplify and enhance use of the widely used DMIS program.